The Smallest Wood Pellet Boilers

Smallest Wood Pellet Boilers

• The smallest wood pellet boilers range between 8 kilowatts and 15 kilowatts. For a single family, a small 8 kilowatt wood pellet boiler burns 7,000 pounds of pellets per year. This will demand a storage space of about 177 cubic feet. Many small boilers use a two-stage combustion process, featuring a ceramic refractory lining used in combination with a hot water tank for heat recovery. There are also small automated pellet boilers, or small wood stoves 18 by 19.5 inches in size that can be placed in the living room and fed bags of pellets. They heat up between 600 and 1,200 square feet or space.

Advantages and Disadvantages

• The advantage of small wood pellet boilers is their convenient size, which makes for easy placement while still obtaining the necessary heat. Wood pellets are about 40 to 60 percent less costly than oil or propane, and are carbon-neutral. Pellet boilers are also just as efficient at heating a home as oil boilers. Pellets also support the regional economy and improve the energy security of the region. One disadvantage of pellets is that they are bulkier than oil, with one liter of oil equaling the amount of 4.4 pounds of pellets, and are less convenient than gas or oil, requiring pellet delivery. They also require regular maintenance, which includes emptying ash bins regularly and cleaning the heat exchanger tubes.

Sizing

• To find the best size boiler for the home, the heat load of the home must be calculated accurately. In case of newer buildings, general rules may apply. However, for older buildings, a survey calculating heat loss based on the insulation type, size and type of windows is required. Larger systems are not always the best options, as they may result in lower boiler efficiency and higher heating bills.

Other Considerations

• When shopping for wood pellet boilers, consider safety, quality and use. The boiler must be equipped with multiple fail-safe mechanisms to avoid fire risks. This may include temperature sensors, fuel chutes, water sprinkler systems and air locks. Investing in a higher quality, easy-to-use wood pellet system is more cost efficient in the long run. A wood boiler, regardless of its size, is able to regulate the temperature output need for the home without losing efficiency.